Should Guns Be Allowed on Utah College Campuses?

A group of Utahns is asking Governor Gary Herbert to lead out on the issue of restricting guns on college campuses.

Chelsi Archibald is a young mother who represents the advocacy group Moms Rising. She says she’s asking for sensible gun safety measures on college campuses because she wants people to be able to attend classes and assemblies without fear.

“We don’t necessarily have an issue on guns, but we want kids on campus to be safe and to have the freedom to learn as they want and not have to worry about their safety,” she says.

Archibald says Utah is unique among other states in how it forces universities to allow guns.

“They can’t bring food in, they can’t bring alcohol, but they can bring a gun which puts my child’s life and other student’s lives in danger," she says.

Bishop Scott Hayashi of the Episcopal Diocese of Utah was also part of the group. He says he would like to see the law changed back to how it was before 2004, when Universities were given discretion to make their own rules.

“I believe the University as a place of education and free speech ought to be able to look at that in order for that free speech and those conversations to take place,” he says.

The group presented the governor with an online petition signed by more than 20 thousand people. They also spoke with Herbert’s Deputy Chief of Staff, Michael Mower. Herbert is out of town and was unavailable for comment.

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Utah is one of 14 states where the number of gun-related deaths is now higher than the number of highway fatalities.

Highway fatalities in Utah – and across the country – have dropped dramatically in the past decade, thanks in part to safer cars and better drunk driving enforcement. For Utah, a report from the Violence Policy Center says there were 277 motor vehicle deaths in 2011, compared to 308 deaths from guns. That includes accidents, homicides and suicides.